For years I've considered big bore ARs a bit of an absurdity, but for some reason the 375 SOCOM has piqued my interest as a hunting cartridge.

Who's got one? What's your experience been?

So far the availability of barrels is my peeve. I have everything but. I does also require the .458 Socom bolt, same size head, and there are subtle changes necessary to feed that large head which means stock 5.56 extractor and ejectors may malfunction. Tromix has the correct one.

The upper seems to require an enlarged ejection port which can be found, mine ran $75. Nothing special about them other than that.

Stock issue GI mags are good to go, unless your state is picky about AR mags in use, there is a single shot follower which seems to address their concerns. Since it's a dedicated rifle I've got a 10 shot Lancer with steel feed lips for that job, should hold 4 rounds of SOCOM which is plenty.

You don't have to handload for .375, and ammo availability for sighting in and hunting is plentiful when ordering on the internet. Considering the primer issue is again a major stumbling block in reloading, supply chain issues, etc I've decided I should have started 5 years ago and missed the opportunity.

Yeah, the lack of barrel options is sort of a sticking point for me, too.

I did notice that Wilson is selling a complete barrel, gas block and bolt kit for a not awful price. Too bad the only options are 16" or 18". And Tromix has 10.5"...but I'm not finding anything in between. I'd like to try something in the 12.5"-14.5" range.

Didn't consider the enlarged ejection port. Thanks for the heads up.

I've been reloading & shooting 16" carbine 375 & 458 SOCOM's for a couple years now.
375SoCom- 270gr @ 1850+fps
458SoCom- 350gr @ 1850+fps w/400-500gr as sub loads.

Brass is manufactured by StarLine or brass/ammo from SouthernBallisticResearchAmmunition.

375SOCOM dies are manufactured by CH4D & Redding.
458SOCOM dies are available from the above & Lyman or Lee if you prefer JUNK.

The 375 Stalker is a viable option also, that I cast/reload for.
(what the 300BO wants to be,but is not)

An XL upper is required (enlarged/cut) ejection port to eliminate case dings upon ejection that use the std AR-15 port door.

That large port is also considered necessary because of those tight dimensions of the much smaller 5.56 case. Sometimes they won't even come out - malfunctions made a bigger ejection port necessary, or so I'm told.

When searching online with questions, you will come across a poster on some forums by the name "big bore," hes shot them extensively for years and knows a thing or two more than the insurance company about them.

As for barrel availability, I get it - small lot barrels aren't getting cold hammer forged, they use the more labor intense button or die and lathing process. A LOT of money is getting thrown at firearms right now, so demand is prioritized and we get what we get when we get it. The .375 is also a well set chamber design - my research shows there aren't issues with competing vendors as the reams used to finish chambers all work well (so far.) That came up as an issue for the .458 and 6.8 SPC in their early days, which is a reason why some have stayed away.

What is really nice about .375 is the much flatter trajectory with less bullet drop. Where some can shoot well out to 200m with .458 it's a lot of drop factor beyond 250. The .375 will do 250 and still have less drop to 300 - which means it carries the power out further, too.

I've seen deer hit with an 8mm Remington Magnum and for all the punishment it will anchor one on the spot. I consider .375 an intermediate step up for the AR - don't need to wonder if I hit a deer with it. I'll know.

Was just checking around and found barrels in stock at SBR. With bolt.